February 2020

21Feb

Will Collective Defined Contribution Schemes take off?

Collective defined contribution (CDC) schemes are now on the horizon, with Royal Mail lining up to be the first UK employer to launch this type of scheme, later this year. Already well-established in countries such as the Netherlands and Denmark, the schemes were given the green light by the then Work and Pensions Secretary, Amber Rudd, in March 2019. The new schemes aim to bridge the gap between DB and DC schemes. They may be attractive to companies...

February 21, 2020
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
15Feb

Ageing, Productivity and Employment Status

By Brindusa Anghel, Aitor Lacuesta The article analyses how labour market participation and the type of work performed change with age. Drawing on data from the OECD’s Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), it is documented that as people age they gradually lose certain skills relating to their ability to do physical work or use new technologies, or their literacy and numeracy skills. By contrast, as they build up experience, older workers develop better planning skills...

February 15, 2020
Articles, Pension design, , ,
Read more...
14Feb

Denmark’s Largest Pension Fund to Launch Sustainable Vehicle

By Michael Katz PFA, Denmark’s largest pension fund with DKK560 billion ($82 billion) in assets, is launching a pension product that allows participants to invest their retirement savings in climate-focused investments that it says will be carbon neutral in five years at the latest. Beginning this summer, PFA Climate Plus will be available to the fund’s customers to allow them the opportunity to “significantly step up” how much their pensions contribute to cutting carbon dioxide emissions, the fund said. “As Denmark’s...

February 14, 2020
News, OP Ed, Slider, , , ,
Read more...

January 2020

23Jan

Credit Suisse Publishes Study Urging Rethink On Retirement

The Credit Suisse Research Institute (CSRI) has published a study calling for an urgent rethink on retirement provisions in the face of aging societies. Rising life expectancies and falling fertility rates have led to aging populations becoming a reality in many countries across the globe. What has so far primarily been an issue in developed countries is also becoming a concern for the developing world. Governments worldwide will have to address questions associated with aging societies: how to ensure...

January 23, 2020
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
10Jan

The end of Retirement

By John D. Stoll. It took about six years of annual asset reviews with my financial planner, Joe Mackey, to confront a big question. After I spent my entire adult life trying to save enough to quit working by 65, Mr. Mackey wanted to know what my rush was. “Do you even think you’ll want to retire?” I’m a 42-year-old writer with a job offering travel, intellectual grist and social connection. With few hobbies and an allergy for sitting still, it’s...

January 10, 2020
News, OP Ed, Slider,
Read more...
02Jan

US. Estate Planning: What Does the SECURE Act Mean for You and Your Retirement?

The SECURE Act signed into law in December is the most important retirement legislation in over a decade. The overall goal of the SECURE Act was to make saving for retirement easier and more affordable. Read also Japan’s GPIF is right — short selling is downright irresponsible What’s New? One major change is that the age that individuals must start taking their minimum distributions from retirement accounts has been raised from 70 ½ to 72. This is important because it...

January 2, 2020
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...

December 2019

27Dec

Nigeria. Micro-pension contributors hit 30,000 in 7 months

Contributors for the Micro Pension plan are now 30,000 seven months after it was launched, the National Pension Commission (PenCom) has said. The Acting Director General of PenCom, Aisha Umar-Dahir said this in an exclusive interview with Daily Trust. The Micro Pension plan was launched by President Muhammadu Buhari in March 2019. It is aimed at extending pension coverage to the self-employed and persons working in the informal sector to drive financial inclusion and allow the target population to...

December 27, 2019
News, Slider, , , ,
Read more...
20Dec

Ghana. Government Staff Association Against Extension of Tier 2 Pension Implementation Date

The Civil and Local Government Staff Association, Ghana (CLOGSAG) says it will not compromise on the January 1, 2020 implementation of the TIER 2 Pension Scheme. Executive Secretary of CLOGSAG, Isaac Bampoe-Addo, said, the continuous extension of implementation of the Scheme, empowers the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) to monopolise pension administration in the country, thereby rendering workers worse off. Addressing a press conference in Accra yesterday, he stated that, none of the public sector occupational pension...

December 20, 2019
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
19Dec

French unions meet government as pension strikes continue

The French government and unions are to face-off over controversial pension reforms, 14 days into a crippling transport strike that has damaged businesses, frustrated commuters and cast a shadow over holiday plans. After hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets on Tuesday, both sides stood firm prior to a series of meetings. Government officials have previously said they were ready to negotiate. Union leaders have vowed to continue their action into the new year as the government...

December 19, 2019
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
17Dec

Estonia: use robust growth to improve income equality and well-being

Estonia’s economy is performing well, and public finances are in excellent shape, yet growth is softening and spending pressures from infrastructure needs and an ageing population are mounting. Efforts should now focus on improving income equality and well-being, greening growth and accelerating the country’s digital transformation, according to a new OECD report. The latest OECD Economic Survey of Estonia notes Estonia’s expertise in information technology and its global head start in digitalising government services. Estonia now needs to accelerate...

December 17, 2019
News, Slider, ,
Read more...